~ Thank You for 2,100 Powerstones, Here's Your Bonus Chapter!
~ 19 Advanced Chapters Available on my Patreon
<><><><><><><><>
CRACKLE! BOOM!
Two bolts of tyrannical, ferocious, crimson-black lightning pierced the bodies of the two Marine Admirals, Kizaru and Ryokugyu.
These two were powerful Logia users, absolute top-tier powerhouses on the sea.
Yet now, before this savage lightning, they found themselves unable to even transform into their elements, their hands raised in a comical and pathetic gesture of surrender.
"Is this... Sky Sovereign's Haki?" Ryokugyu stammered, drenched in cold sweat, his face a mask of utter horror.
HOW COULD IT BE THIS STRONG??
Only by experiencing it firsthand could one truly understand what this level of Haki represented...
It represented a Haki that absolutely transcended anyone else in this era, a Haki that shattered the known limits of combat power on these seas!
A mere long-range Haki attack had prevented him from elementizing.
What a frightening Haki!
Although Ryokugyu, due to his personal ideology, despised the man who wielded this power, he had to admit: if he were alone against this man, forget fighting, even escaping would likely be an impossible task.
"Hey, don't tell me... Sky Sovereign is nearby?" Ryokugyu asked nervously, looking towards Kizaru.
Even with another Marine Admiral by his side—Kizaru, whose seniority, strength, and Devil Fruit tier were all above his—Ryokugyu felt not a shred of security.
As a new Admiral promoted through the World Military Draft, Ryokugyu had been granted access to the Navy's most classified intelligence. He knew what had happened after the live broadcast from the Summit War was cut.
Sky Sovereign Rowen had suppressed the combined might of former Fleet Admiral Sengoku and Fleet Admiral Akainu.
Only after Hero Garp joined the fray did Rowen feel threatened and end the war.
Of course, this was the official version for public consumption.
For new Marine Admirals like Ryokugyu and Fujitora, it was necessary for them to know the true extent of Rowen's combat strength.
That man, even against the combined might of Garp, Akainu, and Sengoku, showed no fear!
He only ended the war because he didn't want to expend too much stamina and Haki so close to Mariejois.
After all, that man had no qualms about killing Admirals—if Ryokugyu and Fujitora didn't know the true level of Rowen's combat strength, they might be killed by him, which would be a catastrophic blow to both the Navy's justice and its combat power.
So right now, Ryokugyu was scared. Very scared.
If even Sengoku and Akainu working together couldn't beat Sky Sovereign, then he and Kizaru certainly couldn't either.
<><><><><><><><>
"Mah, calm down. It's not Sky Sovereign himself,"
Kizaru's reaction was much better. Though he had also habitually raised his hands in surrender, he had already identified the source of the Haki.
"How scary~ To be able to release such powerful Haki through a Transponder Snail... As expected of the World's Most Dominant Haki User," Kizaru commented with immense awe, looking at a Transponder Snail in Jinbe's hand.
"WHAT! Sky Sovereign isn't here in person?"
Ryokugyu's gloom vanished, his expression turning arrogant again.
This Haki was strong, yes, even capable of disrupting his elementalization, momentarily immobilizing him.
But since it was a remote release, if he disregarded the consumption of stamina and Haki, he could forcibly counter the Haki energy affecting his body and move freely!
"Hmph! If Sky Sovereign were here, you two would be staying here for good," Jinbe snorted coldly, holding the Transponder Snail.
"What's the point of talking nonsense! He's not here, after all!" Ryokugyu's eyes turned fierce.
He prepared to use his Devil Fruit and Haki to force his way through the paralysis. Even the World's Most Dominant Haki User couldn't kill two Admirals with a simple remote Haki attack.
"Don't move, Ryokugyu," Zoro warned, also producing a Transponder Snail.
Then, Oven also took out a Transponder Snail from his coat.
"Hey, hey... can these things be mass-produced?" Ryokugyu's expression froze.
These two Transponder Snails weren't a bluff.
His Observation Haki wasn't sealed; he could feel the terrifying Haki contained within the snails held by Pirate Hunter and Charlotte Oven.
If they released them, three bursts of Sky Sovereign's Haki would descend at once. It would be incredibly difficult for him to break free in a short amount of time.
And his opponents weren't just the offensively weak Charlotte Oven and Charlotte Galette.
There was also Pirate Hunter, whose offensive power, under the influence of his Asura Aura—had already reached the Admiral level.
Under the influence of three Haki blasts, it was highly likely he would be severely wounded by Zoro.
He was a Forest-Forest Fruit user, not a Glint-Glint Fruit user with Kizaru's absurd speed and escape ability. It was clear that Pirate Hunter and his group had already made him their primary target.
Ryokugyu, who bullied the weak and feared the strong, saw that the potential consequences now far outweighed the benefits of continuing the mission.
<><><><><><><><>
"So scary... To be able to mass-produce such Transponder Snails," Kizaru's expression also turned grim.
Though different from Ryokugyu, as a user of the Glint-Glint Fruit, even if they fought head-on, even with three Haki-releasing snails, he was confident he could retreat safely.
But who knew if this was the full extent of Sky Sovereign's trump cards?
That man's methods were godlike and mysterious.
It was better not to continue the fight without knowing all the variables. Besides, this was Big Mom's territory—they didn't have the home-field advantage. If the battle dragged on too long, uncontrollable accidents could occur.
If one, or even two, Emperors appeared—that would be truly disastrous.
"Let's leave it at this for today," Kizaru sighed. He never expected that deploying two Admirals would yield no decent results.
Jinbe and the others didn't press the issue, letting Kizaru and Ryokugyu retreat.
WHOOSH!
After Kizaru and Ryokugyu had completely departed, an Air Door opened.
"Ryokugyu? His power is decent, but his personality is truly awful," Rowen commented, a crimson-black light flashing in his eyes.
"He's nothing but a coward who preys on the weak. To think a guy like that could become an Admiral..." Jinbe despised people like Ryokugyu most.
He sensed none of the 'Disposition' a true powerhouse should possess. He just had a powerful Devil Fruit and nothing else.
Jinbe felt contempt for him from the bottom of his heart.
"But he is an Admiral. A fighting force that will have a major impact on the war, This war isn't just about taking down Kaido and Big Mom. It's about weakening the Navy's combat strength as much as possible."
Rowen's eyes flashed with an astonishing crimson-black light.
The final battle was very close.
The Navy was a key part of the World Government's power, and their six Admiral-level combatants were a serious problem.
If he only took out Kaido and Big Mom, all this effort would be wasted. Rowen had to use this war to eliminate as many of the Navy's top fighters as possible, paving the way for the final confrontation.
And to achieve that, he first needed to completely draw the Navy into this war.
<><><><><><><><>
"But those injuries were really realistic. Kizaru must have believed it," Zoro commented, looking at Oven's injuries with a smile.
FWOOSH! FWOOSH!
The next moment, Oven's injuries rippled, strings coiling, instantly healing him.
"It relies on the Human-Human Fruit's power, allowing the strings to possess human characteristics," Rowen replied with a smile.
A simple string puppet made by the String-String Fruit, being composed entirely of strings, wouldn't bleed if injured, just turn back into threads.
But with the power of the Human-Human Fruit added, it was different. It gave the strings 'human characteristics'—skin, blood, bones, all no different from a real person. If not for this, faking injuries on these string puppets would be much more difficult to control.
"It's a shame only one of the Tobiroppo, Page One, showed up," Rowen said, glancing at the "Page One" puppet.
The real one had already been captured, his Devil Fruit plundered.
"There will be many more opportunities," Jinbe smiled.
Rowen's move was too terrifying.
Now, the core members of the Big Mom Pirates, Charlotte Oven, Charlotte Galette, and Charlotte Brûlée, were all Rowen's string puppets.
And in the Beasts Pirates, besides the Marine spy Drake, one of the Tobiroppo, Page One, was also a string puppet.
With these core members of two pirate crews in place, escalating the war situation was too simple.
"Maintaining these string puppets also consumes a lot of stamina. A pity. Otherwise, I could directly create string puppets of Katakuri and King, and easily influence the battle," Rowen chuckled.
The stronger the person being replicated, the more stamina it took.
Oven and Page One were manageable. Katakuri and King would be too much of a drain, and any mistake could alert the enemy.
So Rowen didn't target the Yonko Commanders, but these core officers instead.
"But the effect is the same," Rowen looked at the Big Mom Pirates' members who had fainted under his Haki.
"The injuries need to be more realistic,"
Rowen extended his right hand.
WHOOSH!
An Air Door opened on Rowen's right hand.
A dazzling flash of light materialized on Rowen's right hand.
WHOOSH!
A laser shot out from the Air Door on Rowen's right hand.
BOOM! BOOM!
A terrifying explosion instantly engulfed the island.
"The power of the Glint-Glint Fruit taken from Kuma's body... Big Mom and Kaido will have no choice but to believe it," Zoro smiled.
Kuma's Pacifista body had been built using Kizaru's Glint-Glint Fruit ability. Rowen had plundered that laser trait directly from Kuma's body, then had Franky, who had studied at Vegapunk's lab, create a new vessel, which was now stored in the Door-Door Fruit's alternate dimension.
He only needed to open an Air Door to use the Glint-Glint Fruit's laser ability.
WHOOSH!
Rowen moved his hand, and the laser pierced the bodies of the four string puppets—Oven, Galette, Page One, and Drake.
"Kizaru has attacked. The Big Mom Pirates' forces in this sea region are annihilated, their Officers severely wounded. Will that mentally unstable Big Mom be able to endure this?"
Rowen's eyes were chillingly cold.
All the Big Mom Pirates' members here were dead.
These fodder weren't even worthy of being turned into puppets. When necessary, Rowen never hesitated to slaughter.
"Well then. Begin your escape," Rowen smiled, looking at Oven and the others.
VMM!
Rowen's body changed.
"How scary~ The Big Mom Pirates,"
A sleazy, lazy voice, a figure in a justice coat...
Using his Nine-Tailed Fox ability, Rowen had transformed into Kizaru. The moment his Haki pierced Kizaru and Ryokugyu's bodies, their appearances and auras were replicated into Rowen's Nine-Tailed Fox Fruit's copy library.
"What an unbelievable power!" Zoro and Jinbe exchanged glances, utterly amazed.
With these abilities combined, Rowen could accomplish things no one else in the world could even imagine.
BEEEEEAM!
The fake Kizaru raised a finger and fired another laser.
BEEEEEAM! BOOOOOOOOOOOOM!
<><><><><><><><>
"Brother! It's Kizaru!"
Aboard a Big Mom Pirates reinforcement fleet, the fake Brûlée pointed and screamed in terror at the figure who was casually toying with the heavily wounded Oven and Galette.
"BASTARD!" Katakuri's face was impossibly dark.
"Brother! That's Kizaru! Ask Mama for help!" Brûlée's forehead was beaded with cold sweat.
"DAMMIT!" Katakuri was filled with unwillingness. But he knew that to fight Kizaru head-on was suicide.
"MAMA! KIZARU HAS MADE HIS MOVE!" Katakuri took out a Transponder Snail, contacting Big Mom.
Among the Big Mom Pirates, the only one who could deal with a Marine HQ Admiral was Emperor Big Mom herself.
<><><><><><><><>
"Achoo!"
On his way back to Marine Headquarters, the real Kizaru sneezed violently.
"How strange... why do I feel like something is wrong?" Kizaru smacked his lips.
<><><><><><><><>
~ 19 Advanced Chapters Available on my Patreon!
https://p-atreon.com/dragonnx
(Just remove the hyphen to access Patreon normally.)
<><><><><><><><>
~# Keep the chapters coming — Support with Power Stones!
~# Every 300 Power Stones = Bonus Chapter